Shelburne: Christians held to higher standard

In his most famous sermon Jesus compared his followers to “the salt of the earth” and “the light of the world.” He said people around us would see the good we are doing here and give glory to God above.

He was right. Christians do good works. Always have. Always will. This brief column could not contain the list of all the great hospitals, schools and charities Christians have founded and supported worldwide. Only God knows how many personal acts of love and kindness have been inspired by faith in Jesus.

In addition to these notable expressions of compassion, however, any credible list of Christian good works would also need to include the moral excellence Jesus requires of his people. All through the Gospels we hear Christ calling men and women to purify not just their hands but their hearts as well.

Jesus says it’s not enough to resist the urge to murder a person who insults or abuses us. Jesus says we must avoid hating the offender. He says it’s not enough to avoid the sexual sins common to humanity. We must rid our hearts of the lust that causes them.

No religious leader ever called his followers to live by a higher, holier standard than the one set by Jesus.

In this light, we Christians urgently need to hear a searching question posed in a Touchstone editorial by Patrick Henry Reardon. He asks, “How are pagans to take seriously those who profess to be better than the world, when in fact they live by norms conspicuously lower than the world?”

Reardon’s query would not be so unsettling if those of us who lead Christ’s church could point to our flocks as models of morality. If adultery never happened among us, if divorces were unheard of in our ranks, if none of us in the church were addicts to porn, crack, alcohol, calories, credit cards or daytime TV, then we might dismiss Reardon’s bothersome question.

But the sad reality is Christian fellowships consist of people who are very human. The redeemed aspire to a higher goal than the world, but too often we wind up being just as fallible as our un-churched neighbors.

The New Testament challenges Christians to be “innocent and pure as God’s perfect children, who live in a world of corrupt and sinful people. You must shine among them like stars lighting up the sky, as you offer them the message of life” (Philippians 2:15-16, TEV).

Gene Shelburne is minister of the Anna Street Church of Christ, 2310 Anna St. Contact him at geneshel@aol.com, or get his books and magazines at www.annastreetchurch.com. His column appears at least monthly in the Faith section.